Rapture Of Hearts: Anniversary
by Cassidy S. Waters
Summary: It was their special day; everyone wanted to make it perfect.


**CS: Finally, the story I promised ages ago! Here it is, for all your reviewing pleasure!**

**Gaomon: We apologize for any spelling errors or grammar issues. We will fix those . . . if we get the time.**

**Firion: This story contains Vaan's and Terra's children, as well.**

**Nel: Which means we own nothing but the three little kiddies here.**

**Dorumon: We thank you ahead of time for your reviews. Enjoy!**

**Envy: What? I'm last . . . Whatever. More one-shots for Dissidia fans coming soon. Mostly WoLxLight, but we are making a multi-chap for VaanxTerra . . .**

* * *

The boy peeked his head into the bedroom. He saw the two forms of his parents huddled together under the covers, his father's arms warped around his mother, holding her close to his chest. Turning back to his younger siblings, he nodded. "Okay, they're still asleep."

"We gotta hurry!" his five year sister whispered. "Mommy and Daddy are sleeping!"

"Hurry, hurry!" squealed the one year old boy holding the sister's hand, giggling and sucking his thumb at the same time. The eight year old boy put a finger to his lips and shushed the toddler. "We can't let them hear."

The baby giggled again, though slightly toned down and mimicked his brother's gesture. The trio then proceeded down the stairs, the eight year old carrying the infant while the five year old scampered ahead.

Once in the kitchen, the boy set the baby down in his high chair (with the help of a stull) and grabbed a pan out of the cupboard. The girl opened the refrigerator and scooped out five eggs, before looking helplessly at her older brother. "Reks," she whined before blowing a strand of blond hair out of her eyes, "where do I put this?"

"Hand them to me, Erin," Reks took the eggs and broke them into the skillet. The baby squealed, clapping his hands happily. Reks hushed him again, and the baby giggled.

The eight year old used the stull to better keep an eye on the sunny-side ups, watching the transparent liquid solidify and turn white. Erin rummaged through the fridge, taking out jelly, orange juice, and milk. She set all the things on the table. The infant began to whimper, "Hungry, hungry."

Erin gave a once over. "You get food, later, kay, Aiden?"

"Aiddy, Aiddy," the infant cooed, trying to say his name.

Reks pointed at the bread box. "Erin, can you get some toast ready?"

Erin scooted a chair over and jumped on top of it. It squeaked in protest, but she ignored it as she reached into the box. The chair squeaked more as she struggled to grab some bread. Suddenly, without warning, the chair broke, taking her footing right underneath her feet. She cried out and hit the ground hard.

Meanwhile, upstairs in their parents' bedroom, the mother heard the crash and woke immediately. Her pale blond hair twisted this way and out, unorderly, drooping over and around her face. She nudged her husband's shoulder hurriedly, whispering, "Vaan, Vaan, wake up! I think something happened to the children."

"Terra, you always think something happened to them," murmured Vaan, cracking one eye open. Ether way, maybe the way his wife was looking at him or the guilt for not trusting her motherly instincts, Vaan got up and pushed the door open. "Kids?" he called downstairs.

Another crash, not as loud as the first, came from the kitchen, following by coughing and a squeal.

Vaan looked over his shoulder with an arched eyebrow. "Sounds like something's up." Terra didn't need to hear anything, as she grabbed a bathrobe from the closet and rushed outside the bedroom, tying a sloppy knot as she went. Vaan watched as her bed hair bounced up and down with every hurried step. Sighing, he followed her downstairs.

When the parents arrived, they weren't expecting a huge mess in the kitchen. Egg yoke was all over the floor, with streak marks of jelly and peanut butter prints shaped like bare feet littering the ground.

Aiden was crying, spooked by unharmed by whatever had crossed. Terra immediately tended the wailing infant as Vaan continued to survey the kitchen. The peanut butter and jelly footprints led him to the other two children, both of whom were covered in egg joke and jelly. Erin's blue eyes were misty as she sniffled, leaning against Reks with her hands behind her back. Reks had his head hung, looking very ashamed of himself.

"What happened here?" Vaan asked, more so to himself than to the children. Reks shifted uncomfortably on his feet, still looking down. "We were trying to make breakfast. . ." he murmured.

"Breakfast?" Terra gestured around the kitchen. "This looks more like a disaster zone than simply making breakfast."

"We're sorry," both children echoed. Vaan put his hands on his hips. "Well, I can clearly see that at the moment, but just how did you get the kitchen in this state?"

"What is this?" Terra had found the broken chair and was wearing a look of mild shock.

Erin spoke this time, saying, "I was getting bread from the bread box, and the chair broke when I was standing on it."

"What?" Terra almost shouted. "Erin, what on Earth were you thinking? You could have been seriously hurt!"

"But I'm not," Erin replied, pointing to herself. "See? No boo-boos."

Terra shook her head angrily. "You were lucky this time, but next time you could get something worse than a boo-boo. You could get a broken foot, a broken arm, or even split your head—"

"Terra, calm down," Vaan stated, wrapping an arm around his wife. "The kids are sorry. Children make mistakes, 'nuff said."

"But, Vaan, I'm worried that one day they'll make the wrong mistake and get seriously hurt!"

"But we weren't!" Erin replied. "Aiddy just got spooked, but he's okay."

Aiden responded by sniffling and reaching to one of the cracked eggs while still in Terra's arms. "Eggie."

Terra shifted Aiden, wiping a stray tear from his eye. "It doesn't matter. Both of you, to your rooms right now. I want you to think about how serious this accident could have been, and when you're done thinking about that, come find me and tell me how you will make sure this never happens again."

Reks and Erin gulped, looked at their mother, then quickly looked at their father. Vaan gestured toward the stairs. "You heard your mother. Rooms, now."

Before the two children reached the stairs, Vaan added quickly, "And after you're done with your punishment, get cleaned up, okay?"

Once the two were gone, Terra finally managed to calm Aiden down to the point of falling asleep on her shoulder. Vaan reached out and took him from her, smiling gently. "I'll take care of the kids," he said, winking.

"And I'll clean up the kitchen," Terra replied, rolling up her sleeves. "I don't think I can keep a calm demeanor after what happened here."

"They're just kids, Terra," Vaan said. "They're gonna make mistakes, sometimes even the wrong ones." He frowned slightly. "Like my brother."

Terra reached out and touched Vaan's shoulder. "I know. That's why I'm so worried." She leaned forward and peeked him on the cheek. "I don't want things to repeat themselves."

Vaan gave her a happy-go-lucky smile, although she could still see the pain in his eyes. "Well, I'm off. Better tuck this little guy in before he wakes up." With that, he climbed the stairs, leaving Terra to tend to the kitchen.

Looking around, she sighed, then with a determined look on her face, clapped her hands together and declared, "Well, better get started!"

* * *

Reks had just gotten into thinking about why making a mess in the kitchen was such a bad thing when his father came into his room.

His facial expression roughly neutral, Vaan gestured towards the general direction of the bathroom. "Let's get you cleaned up, shall we? And while we're at it, we can talk about what happened today."

"Okay," Reks whimpered, and taking his dad's hand, followed him into the bathroom.

As he waited for Reks to clean himself up, Vaan said absently, "So, Reks, what compelled you and your siblings to attempt breakfast?"

Reks stopped scrubbing himself momentarily, looking down at the soapy water with guilt written all over his face.

"We . . . we just wanted to make your anniversary nice . . ."

Vaan tilted his head thoughtfully, humming in response. "A considerate thought," he said pointedly, "but did either of you know how to make breakfast?"

"I remember how you guys did it."

"We're also older and taller than you kids," Vaan teased, grinning. Reks smiled a little, glad to his father was no longer upset. However, the smile disappeared at the thought of his mother, who he was pretty sure was still very upset.

Noticing the change, Vaan made a guess on why Reks was feeling bad all over and suggested, "You know, while your mother may fuss over things like this, it's only because she cares." Winking, he interlaced his fingers behind his head and stuck one foot out causally. "I'm pretty sure, though, if you just apologized and promise to never do anything goofy like this again, she'll be set in a better mood."

"You think so?" Reks asked, looking up, although doubt still lingered on his face. Vaan replied with a smile, "Definitely. But before you do that, make sure you're somewhat presentable. I don't think you look all that believable with egg still in your hair."

* * *

Terra sighed as she scrubbed the floor, the small sponge swelled already with the yoke and crumbs from the failed breakfast. She heard faint shuffling, and looked up to see Reks rocking back and forth on his heels, looking rather remorseful and pitiful. When he noticed his mother looking at him, Reks looked up and tried to explain, or apologize, or even both. "Mom, I—"

Terra waved her hand dismissively. "It's okay, Reks. I know you didn't mean for any of this to happen." She held out her arm, to where the eight year old scurried over and wrapped his little arms around her shoulders. She sighed and ruffled his wavy hair affectionately. "You know I'll always love you, even when you make mistakes, right?" she offered.

Reks nodded hastily. "Yeah, I know, but—"

"You're so unsure of everything," she sighed. A sad look crept into her blue eyes as she reminisced for a moment. "Just like I was when I was younger."

"What do you mean?" Reks was looking up at her curiously, his eyes wide with interest. Terra almost giggled—he looked so cute like that! But she quickly controlled herself, lifting Reks with a grunt up and on her lap when she sat herself down on a non-broken chair. When both were comfortable, Terra began, "When I was younger, I used to be so unsure of myself. I was so scared of everything, and I couldn't bring myself to trust many people. But then," and to this she smiled and touched Reks's little nose, "your father came into the picture. He was the exact opposite of me, so carefree, so happy, so adventurous! And your father helped me become more confident in myself."

"How did he do that?" Reks asked curiously. Terra merely smiled and ruffled her son's hair again. "He did that by telling me that I can always say no. I wasn't willing to look people in the eyes and tell them how I felt. Eventually, all that uncertainty, all that fear, went away. I still made mistakes, but I knew my friends would forgive me in the end, because they loved me." She gave him a peek on the forehead before stating, "Just like how I love you."

Reks looked up, shocked. "So then . . . you forgive me?"

"I forgave you a while back, Reks." Setting the boy back on the floor, she stood up and added, "You're my son. I will always love you no matter. Don't ever forget that."

Reks then buried his face into her chest, murmuring, "Thanks, Mom." Terra smiled and gave him a little squeeze back. "Your welcome, Reks." Pulling back, she looked around the kitchen and then at her son. "So, you wanna help your old mother keep this mess up?"

Reks grinned. "You're not old."

Terra waved a finger at him. "I don't know. Pushing thirty is getting close, you know." She winked, making him burst into a fit of giggles.

* * *

It was several minutes later when Vaan returned with a freshly cleaned Erin and a bubbly Aiden. Pausing at the kitchen doorway, with both children in his arms, he cocked his head to the side, a smile on his tan face. "Am I interrupted Mom & Son time?"

Terra looked up from the floor while Reks continued to scrub. "Just finishing up, here," she said, brushing a curl out of her face. Reks peeked up and gave his dad a cheeky grin.

"So all's forgiven, no?" Vaan setErindown, who then scampered over to her mother and gave her a big hug. Terra scooped her daughter up, giving her a little butterfly kiss on the forehead. Smiling, Vaan then said, "How 'bout I make breakfast? Lotless complicated."

"A lot less messy, too," Terra sighed, helpingErininto her chair. Reks had stopped scrubbing and sat down as well. Once Terra had Aiden seated in his high chair, Vaan got to work on breakfast, which consisted of sunny-side up eggs, buttered toast, and bacon. When the meal was served, the family immediately began to converse, talking about the daily activities they were going to do throughout the day.

Even though the children were young, at least Reks and Erin noticed that their parents avoided the topic of their wedding anniversary. Reks knew he had mentioned it to his father, but he unsure of why neither bothered to talk about what their plans were to celebrate this day, even it was a Monday.

After breakfast was done, Terra and Vaan went back upstairs to get ready for the day. The children helped put the dishes away, as they had previously proven to their parents that they could clean up after themselves (at least the older ones could). After that task was done, they too went to get ready, helping Aiden as well, as the baby could not do much on his own yet.

When all was said and done, Reks waited patiently for his parents to return to drop him and his siblings off at school. Vaan and Terra appeared with Erin and Aiden, both of whom looked fairly presentable.

Penelo came over and took the children to school (Aiden stayed with Terra, as he was too young for preschool), while Vaan went to work. Once at school, Reks and Erin stood in the hall with the other children, all waiting for the bell to sound in order to be let in.

"I'll make Mommy something pretty in art class," Erin stated, bouncing on her feet. "Something with lots of glittery and ribbons . . . and moogles!"

Reks laughed at the final suggestion. "I think Mom's gonna love that." Pausing to think, he said, "Maybe I could make something out of wood. Mom always liked my c-cra—"

"Craftsmanship!" Erin corrected, giggling. Reks shot her a slightly annoyed look before scratching his head. "Yeah, my craftsmanship." (He had no idea how Erin knew that word better than him, but he guessed it had something to do with bragging rights) Shrugging, he waited until the bell rang, and he and his sister rushed to class.

* * *

In art class, Erin set to work immediately. Rolling her sleeves up (she had no idea why she should, but she had seen her parents do it when they got to work in the kitchen, so it must have something to do with working hard), she grabbed one of the buckets full of coloring utensils and rushed back to her station.

With a giant sheet of paper in front of her, she poured out all the coloring materials out and grabbed a random assortment of colors (or colors she thought were pretty) and began doodling (creating artwork, she claimed!) along the page, drawing puppies, kitties, moogles, and butterflies all around the frame. She saved the center piece for the best part for later.

"What are you doing, Erin?" a voice asked her. Looking up, Erin saw Relm looking down, smiling at the little girl.

"It's my mommy and daddy's anniversary," Erin stated simply, careful in wording the large word perfectly. "I'm making them a pretty card. See?" She held up her masterpiece for the art teacher.

Relm hummed with approval. "That's pretty good. But the middle's empty. What are you going to put there?"

"That's a secret," Erin stated, putting a finger on her lips. "You can't tell my mommy and daddy."

"Mum's the word," Relm promised. "I won't tell a soul."

"Good." Erin giggled. "Then you can help me."

* * *

Reks didn't have an art class that day. For him, it was gym, and it was much later in the day. So while he was stuck in class, he began to plan what his present to his parents would be.

I could get Mom some flowers, he thought to himself. She likes flowers. Or another stuffed moogle. She loves those.

Shaking his head, he decided, no, he wasn't getting her and his dad something he always got them. He wanted to make this anniversary special. And by golly, he was going to make it happen!

Sighing, he scratched his blond hair, sending the curls bouncing up and down on his head. Thinking was hard work, and with nothing coming to mind, he felt hopelessly lost.

"Need a hand, kiddo?" Reks looked up to see Vaan's former care-taker, Migelo, standing over him, smiling wisely.

"Not unless you can tell me what a good present for my parents' anniversary would be."

Migelo hummed, stroking his face carefully. "Weeeeelll, if I know Vaan well enough, I'd say something to do with airships. Terra, probably animals."

Reks shook his head. "But I always get them something like that. I want this one to be special. Something new."

"If you keep thinking that for every anniversary," Migelo stated with a wink, "then you'd definitely going to have problems." When Reks' shoulders slumped in defeat, Migelo gave a dismissive wave. "Instead of looking at the glass half empty, look at it half full. Boy, you've got a lot of imagination. Enough to fill this whole room."

"But I can't think of anything," Reks replied, holding out his hands. "It's like . . . uhhh, I can't think of what I can give her. Or even make her for that matter."

Migelo cocked his head slightly. "Make? Like what, if you don't mind my asking?"

Reks shrugged. "Well, normally I'd carve something out of wood for her, like a moogle, or a chocobo."

Migelo began to stroke his chin, a careful smile creeping on his face. Glancing down at Reks few times, he finally said, "Well, I might just have an idea, if you're willing to listen."

After nodding several times, Reks listened in awe to what his elder had to share with him.

* * *

Terra, of course, didn't stay at home all day. She went out, taking Aiden with her, during noon, to meet up with old friends.

The Sand Sea Café was an old haunt for Vaan and his pals, but today, it would serve as the meeting place for Locke, Celes, and Terra, who carried Aiden in tow.

Arriving a few minutes earlier, she sat down at a vacant table outside, enjoying the peace and sunny day. Aiden cooed and giggled happily as he reached out for new things, pointing and trying to name each of them as they came into his line of sight. Terra helped naming things, but the babe was still too young to fully grasp every name and word. However his attempts were at least adorable.

"If you keep this up, that little guy is going to be a scholar," commented a familiar voice. Terra turned, smiling up at Celes. "It's about time you two showed up."

"Of course!" Locke plopped down across from her and scooped up the menu. "It's the Branford's anniversary. Why wouldn't we show up to congratulate our close friend."

"And best maid and best man," Celes added, winking. Terra rolled her eyes, waving her hand in front of Aiden to grasp his attention. "I hope you two aren't going to bride me and Vaan with those positions."

Both Locke and Celes looked mock-shocked, faking perfect hurt expression as they both said, "What? Us? Never!"

The trio burst out laughing, startling Aiden (although he joined in, though he had no idea why). When they finally calmed down, Locke leaned forward against his elbows, arching an eyebrow. "So, what do you two plan on doing this anniversary?"

Terra looked down at her hands, humming. "Don't know. Vaan and I pretty much wing it every year. Especially with the children, it makes planning rather bothersome."

"But this is your tenth anniversary!" Celes insisted. "Not counting those three years of dating and being engaged, you two should really try something new! You're like this every year. 'We'll come up with something on the fly.' Terra, have you ever considered that Vaan might be wanting to add a new spin onto this?"

"Well, no." Terra glanced at Aiden, who continued to happily babble along, watching a butterfly flutter by. "Vaan and I have done so far well. And the kids seem to like the laissez faire form of celebrating. . ."

"But this year should be different!" Celes added. Locke nodded. "One zero is a pretty big number. Ten years is a good standing for martial status. You two should do something more special than you usual do."

Terra spread out her hands. "Like what?"

Celes twirled her wrist. "Call your husband."

"What?"

"You heard me. Call him. But call Penelo first. Tell her you need someone to babysit the kids for the night." A mischievous glint shined in her eyes as she continued, "You two are going to have the best anniversary yet. Trust me."

* * *

Penelo was a dance instructor during the day and weekend. That meant she didn't get to see people younger than her until the weekend or afternoon, thus leaving her in the company of the elderly.

Of course, she didn't mind all that much. Sure, they didn't possess the agility or grace of someone younger, but they had just as much, perhaps even more, what with the rather comical slip-ups that seemed to occur every so often.

When the final senior citizen left, bidding Penelo a good day, she checked the clock on the wall, remarking how it was that time.

"Time to go get my godkids," she said with a fond smile. Packing her things, Penelo made her way out of the gym, duffel bag strap hanging from her shoulder when her phone rang. Blinking in mild surprise, she took out the phone to see Terra's name on the caller ID.

With one eyebrow arched, she flipped the phone open, asking, "Terra? What's wrong?"

"Oh, no, nothing's wrong." Yeah, right, Penelo thought with a roll with her eyes. Terra was sounding nervous. Not the bad kind of nervous, granted, but the kind that Penelo knew she had to keep a special eye on.

"Okay, Terra, I'm going to ignore that nervous tone in your voice to ask the question. What do you need?"

"Well . . . I don't mean to be a burden . . ." Someone in the background said something barely audible for Penelo to understand, but Terra began to speak again, this time with more light-hearted amusement, "But could you watch the kids for the night?"

"Until what time?"

"Hang on." More murmuring on the other end, then Penelo got her answer. "Til eleven. Is that too late?"

Penelo shrugged, then remembered that Terra couldn't see her. "Nah, it's fine. I don't mind watching the kids. But dare I ask why?"

"Well, my friends," there was special emphasis put on the word, "want me and Vaan to do something special this anniversary."

"It's the one zero!" someone shouted in the background, as if to back her claim. Penelo laughed. "'Bout time you heated things up. Come on, Terra, Vaan's a man. He needs man things."

"That's—that's not what I meant!" Terra gasped on the other hand, again with another voice, this one feminine, respond, "Yes, it is!"

Penelo laughed even harder as Terra desperately tried to convince both parties on each end of the phone that she wasn't going in that direction. Of course, neither side let up, until Terra finally caved, groaning, "Fine, you win. I'll do . . . something. I just don't what yet."

"I do!" both Penelo and the other feminine voice said at the exact moment.

Terra's response was another groan.

* * *

Vaan set his backpack on the passenger side of the SUV, breathing a sigh of relief. After a long, aching, half-day of work, he finally got a chance to return home. Setzer was kind enough to take the rest of his shift from him, although Vaan was pretty sure the pervert would be expecting a favor in return.

Not that he cared. Now he had a chance to get his wife's gift finalized. Everything was going smoothly, if his feet would stop aching.

Gotta get me some new boots, he thought with a smirk. Maybe Terra would show her 'mind-reading' abilities and give him boots this time. After all, it seemed every anniversary, she always gave him just what he needed the most. Like a new set of ties right when he accidently set his own tie on fire. He fought the grin on his face over the situation as he fondly remembered Terra desperately trying to get rid of the flame. In the end, both he and Terra had been sitting on the floor laughing, finding the whole thing rather hysterical after the flames had been put out.

Driving down the road, Vaan thought how Terra would react once he got her the present he had picked out a week ago. The store had called him yesterday, saying the item he had ordered had finally arrived.

It took him a good twenty minutes to finally get to the store, as it was located in the mall downtown, but before he could even step through the threshold, his phone rang. Arching an eyebrow, he picked it up, asking, "Terra? What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much." Her voice betrayed her. Vaan hummed. "Terra, you're lying."

"Vaan, why do you—"

"You're hesitating before you're speaking, I can hear voices on the other end, and you sound like that time when you were trying to plan a surprise birthday party for me."

There was a pregnant pause before Terra spoke, this time coming clean. "Was it that obvious?"

Vaan chuckled. "Yeah. Pretty much."

Terra sighed. "Alright. There's A LOT going on, but I can't tell you. Better?"

"Much."

"So . . . when are you coming home?"

Vaan stepped into the store, nodding at a store clerk on his way in. "In a few minutes, I suppose. Just have to wrap things up."

"Alright. Listen, Penelo's going to watch the kids for us until eleven. I want you to come home, and listen VERY carefully to Locke's advice." There was some kind of outcry, and Terra whispered back, "What? He already found out."

There was more conversation, but Vaan couldn't make a word of it. Shrugging, he marked it off as Terra's buddies' craziness. "Terra, I'll be home soon, but I need to do something first, okay?"

"Alright. Just get home safely, kay?"

"What? Are my driving skills that bad?"

"No, I just worry. That's what wives and mothers do."

Vaan couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, so you're my mom now, too?"

Terra returned the joke. "Well, I can't let Penelo do all the work."

"Right, I'm sure." Vaan then wished Terra goodbye before hanging up. Looking up at the store clerk, he said, "Hi, I'm Vaan Branford. I want to pick up an order that I had made."

* * *

Terra looked out the window. Cooing in the background, Aiden sat happily in his playpen, repeatedly picking up and dropping his toys on the ground with excited squeals.

Terra glanced at him, smiling. Aiden was a spitting image of his father, in her opinion. While Reks and Erin had a mix, Aiden seemed to be Vaan's mini-me self. His pale blond hair waved in the same fashion as Vaan did, and his eyes were the same shade of pale blue.

Reks and Erin had inherited her curly blond hair and purplish blue eyes. And while Erin had gotten Vaan's personality in stride, Reks had gotten Terra's demeanor. She just prayed he would outgrow it. After all, her shyness and lack of confidence had gotten into a lot of abusive relationships, including one with a certain crazy clown. . .

Ding~dong

Terra turned to look at the door. "Must be Penelo," Terra commented. She went over and peeked through the peephole. It was indeed Penelo, so Terra opened the door with a smile.

Penelo returned the smile, stating, "These kids have something you guys." She peeked over Terra's shoulder asking, "Where's Vaan?"

"He's going to be home soon, I suppose," Terra mused. "He didn't say how long, though."

Penelo sighed, rolling her eyes. "That's Vaan for you. He never tells you how long he's going to be gone." Terra shared a smile and held open the door. "So, how was school for you two," she asked, addressing the two scampering children as they rushed past her.

Both seemed to be acting strangely, Erin clutching a large, thin package to her chest while Reks held his backpack, as if holding precious cargo.

"Fine," Reks answered as Erin skipped away, grinning widely.

Terra arched an eyebrow at their strange behavior. But when she gave Penelo a questionable stare, the dance instructor merely shrugged helplessly.

Both children ran off upside, still holding their items close until she could no longer see them. Gesturing to the couch in front of Aiden's playspot, she asked, "Well, on that note, how are you doing? I hope my change in schedule didn't disrupt anything."

"Nah, nothing to fear. Larsa and I made plans tomorrow to go out to eat for lunch, so harm done."

"I'm glad." Terra slumped against the plush, sighing. Penelo arched an eyebrow at her friend curiously. "What's up?"

Terra gave a tired smile, explaining, "I've been having some low energy this past week, so I went to the doctor."

"Oh? What he say?"

Smiling, she put a finger to her lips. "Can't say this to Vaan, kay?" Penelo's eyes widened, but she returned a nod and leaned forward as Terra whispered into her ear. Her eyes widened further, and suddenly a big grin spread across her face. She squealed and hugged Terra tightly. "Oh my gosh! I'm so happy for you guys!"

"Hush!" Terra whispered. "I don't want him to know until later." Aiden looked up from his play, confused by the two women before returning back.

Giggling like a schoolgirl, Penelo covered her mouth. "So when are you going to tell him?"

"Later. When we meet up. Which is hopefully soon—"

Click! Both women turned their heads to the door to see Vaan walking in, peeking past the doorframe to see them. "Oh, hey there."

Penelo crossed her arms in front of her, making a mock frown. "'Bout time you showed up. Both of us were beginning to wander if you got lost again."

Vaan waved a finger at her, defending, "Hey! I only got lost because Laguna insisted he read the map."

Penelo then smirked in return. "Yes, but it took Claire to get you guys back on track. I thought men were supposed to be good with directions?"

Vaan rolled his eyes, snorting. "Apparently Laguna didn't get the memo." He then turned to Aiden, who had happily squealed upon seeing his father home. "Hey there, little fella! Want up!"

"Up, up!" the babe cried, reaching out with small hands towards Vaan. Laughing, Vaan scooped Aiden up, bouncing him in his arms. "So," Vaan continued, regarding both women, "any particular reason why Penelo needs to watch the kids later?"

"You'll see," Penelo said deviously. "But first—" Her words were cut off by the scampering of little feet, followed by Erin and Reks speeding down the stairs, shouting, "Daddy!" and, "Dad!" respectively.

"Hey there!" Vaan greeted, holding out his remaining arm to the other two. Both jumped towards, talking at once.

Terra hummed curiously. "They don't greet me like that."

"That's because it's a dad thing," Penelo stated, winking. "Same thing happens with me and my boy. Makes you wonder if your kid knows just who bottle feed him."

Terra laughed lightly when Vaan finally calmed the children down. Straightening up, Reks held out a paper bag to his father. "Dad, you and Mom should totally open this!"

"Hey!" Erin whined. "I wanna show Mommy and Daddy my present, too!"

"Calm down," Terra stated, getting off the couch. "We'll open your presents." Vaan chuckled, leaning over to her and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Shall we?"

In the dining room, both children set their presents on the table. Reks shifted his closer to his mother, stating, "Here, Mom. Hope this one."

"But I wanna go first!" Erin whined again. Vaan scooped her up and placed her on his lap. "Let your brother go first. I'll open your present afterwards, kay?"

"Kay," Erin gave up, crossing her arms with her chest and pouting a little. Vaan merely laughed and ruffled her curly hair playfully. Terra smiled at Vaan, reaching over and picking up the paper sack.

It wasn't heavy, but she could definitely tell something was in there. Opening the sack, she gasped and put a hand over her heart. "Oh, Reks . . ."

"What?" Vaan tried peeking over her shoulder. "What'd he do?"

Reaching into the sack, Terra pulled out a miniature model of an airship. It was craved into wood, appearing like a boat with paper propellers and paper wings on its sides. But that wasn't the only thing. On board of the ship were tiny moogles, made was wood and paper, their little pom-poms soft, fuzzy balls. Reks grinned sheepishly, saying, "Migelo helped me with the moogles. He found the fuzzy stuff in the art room."

"Oh, Reks," Terra cooed, hugging her son. "Thank you so much. This is beautiful."

"I'll say," Vaan added, admiring the piece of art. "You've got some talent here. I also like how you got the detail on the ship."

Erin squirmed in her father's lap, declaring, "My turn!" She jumped off and scampered upstairs before coming back down with the large paper. With help from Penelo, she set it up on the table and announced, "Ms. Relm helped me! She gots me lots of glitter and markers and stickers . . ."

Vaan gave a low whistle. "Wow, Erin. You're a little artist." Terra stared at the poster, smiling. There were numerous animals on around the borders, some drawn by Erin, some stickers, and a few from Relm. Glitter and other articles covered the border along with the pictures, but in the center of the picture was a magnificent drawing of the Branford family.

Terra had no doubt Relm was responsible for drawing the image, but still, Erin had made an effort to color it in. Laughing, Vaan ruffled Erin's curls again, giving her a quick peck on the forehead. "Thanks, kiddo. This is awesome."

Erin stuck out her chest, looking proud. Turning to the others, Vaan stated, "Come on. Let's put these things up where we can show them off."

* * *

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang again. Penelo grinned at the couple, finding it amusing as Terra tried futilely to fix Vaan's tie. "You two better get going. Locke awaits."

"Okay." Terra took a deep breath and sighed. "You ready?"

Vaan grinned in return. "I was born ready."

The two opened the door, seeing Locke standing there, dressed well. Celes was in the car, at the wheel. Upon seeing the two, she honked the honk, shouting out the window, "Come on! We aren't getting any younger."

After sharing a light laugh, everyone was in the car, Vaan and Terra waving good-bye to Penelo before driving off.

They drove downtown, straight towards the large mall. In the car, Locke began making instructions to Vaan. "Remember your manners. Napkin goes on lap, keep your elbows off the table . . ."

"Locke, are you reading from a book?" Terra asked. Locke looked up, his hand caught in the corner of her eye, holding a book. "Uhh . . . No?"

"Stop lying, you little thief," Celes said, slapping his hand. Locke immediately defended, "Treasure hunter! Not thief. They're very different. Besides, I bought this book—"

"So you were reading from a book," Vaan jested. Locke glared over at him, earning another chuckle.

Once they arrived at the mall, after more humorous exchanges between Vaan and Locke, (and because the author here is far too lazy and impatient to write more dialogue) they finally arrived at the mall.

Entering inside, Vaan whispered to Terra, "Why am I getting the sinking feeling we're going to one of those fancy-smancy restaurants that cost an arm and a leg to eat tofu?"

Terra bit her tongue, trying not to laugh. Vaan had had a distaste for fancy restaurants since one of their dates when they were kids went horribly wrong. Vaan had lost his wallet and torn his new shirt, not to mention spilled some liquid all over him and another customer. Terra had to help pay for it in the end (although thankfully, Ashe, an old friend of Vaan's, was the daughter of the owner and let them leave without having to wash dishes).

Celes smirked, looking over her shoulder. "Sorry, Vaan. But we are not letting you two eat microwave pizza for dinner again."

"But I like microwave pizza . . ." Vaan moaned, shoving his hands into his pockets. Terra let out a giggle; she couldn't hold it back anymore. Vaan merely gave her a look, then smirked. "What? You don't?"

"Well," she said slyly, "I'm not a fan of the pepperoni breath in the morning." Vaan's eyes widened, breathed on his hand and smelled it, then shrugged before continuing on.

The restaurant was called Figaro's Delight, and apparently Celes had already reserved a table. They were seated, and after ordering something to drink, Vaan leaned over on the table, breaking one of the manner rules Locke had read to him, and asked, "So, Locke, this kind of thing in your budget or do you expect us to pay?"

Locke smirked, leaning back in his chair. "I'm paying, flyboy, and that's because I made some big bucks at Narshe."

Vaan grinned. "Another successful theft?"

Locke slapped his palms on the table, snapping, "I don't steal! I hunt for rare and valuable items!"

Celes touched his shoulder. "Honey, you're drawing attention."

Leaning back against his chair, Locke groaned, but bit his lip and leaned back in his chair. Vaan chuckled to himself whilst Terra merely shook her head with a sigh.

* * *

(Again, the author is too lazy and impatient, thus she will skip the dinner since nothing really happens)

After dinner, the foursome walked through the mall, chatting amongst themselves.

Celes winked. "So, Terra, you gonna tell your hubby about the new bun in the oven?"

Vaan froze where he stood. "Huh?" he said in a very typical Vaan fashion. Terra looked away, blushing. "Erm, I was planning on saving the news for later . . ." she said quietly, almost to herself. The next thing she knew, her hands were being held by Vaan, who looked directly into her eyes.

"Terra, come on. We've been married for ten years now. You can tell me anything."

Terra sighed, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Well, the thing is . . ." She tried for her best smile and stated, "I'm pregnant again."

Vaan reacted to the statement by picking her up and spinning her around while laughing joyfully. "That's great, Terra!" He stopped spinning her, set her down and gave her a kiss on the lips. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I just found out and wanted to tell you for your anniversary present," she replied. "But Celes," to this she shot her friend a quick glare, "spoiled the surprise."

"It's still a good present," Vaan stated. "I mean, this is great! I'm gonna be a dad for the fourth time!"

Celes smirked and grabbed Locke by his collar. "I'll give you two sometime alone," she said sweetly, dragging Locke away, although the latter didn't give much of a fight.

Together alone, Terra felt the familiar giddy butterflies fluttering in her stomach. Looking at Vaan sheepishly, "But yeah, we're going to be parents again. . ."

Vaan couldn't honestly stop grinning. He took her by the hand, beckoning her to follow him. "Come with me, Terra. It's time I gave you my anniversary present."

The butterflies buzzing in a frenzy, Terra meekly followed him, his hand warm and soft against her own. They took a few turns before stopping in front of a store.

Terra looked at him questionably, but he winked and stepped inside. Following him in, she paused, looking around. Each wall had posters of various things, messages, images and the such. Custom T-shirts and baseball caps lined another side of the wall, and different other nick-knacks.

Vaan was speaking to a clerk when Terra came up behind him. Glancing over at her, he finished with, "And I want it shipped to my residence. That okay?"

The clerk nodded. "Sure thing. I'll go get it." He glanced at Terra, smiling lightly. "Your wife's gonna love this," he said before leaving to get whatever Vaan was talking about.

Terra arched an eyebrow at Vaan, who winked before humming to himself.

When the clerk returned, he was pushed something on a cart. Blinking in surprise, Vaan again winked, walking over to pull the covers away.

Terra nearly fell over in shock.

It was their wedding picture, blown up to reach Terra's hips from her feet. The frame was a cool silver, with little white moogles holding hearts along each corner. The picture itself wasn't just the wedding picture, but a collection of other pictures circling them, blending into the big picture.

There was a picture of the children, recently taken, huddling around their parents with big cheesy smiles. There were pictures of them the days they were born. There were also pictures of when Vaan and Terra dated and before the kids. One was with Vaan's birthday, where Terra had given him a nice, wet birthday kiss. Another was their prom night, their very first date.

Walking over to it, she touched the frame lightly before twirling around, racing over and hugging him. "Vaan, thank you!"

Vaan laughing, patting her on the back. "Hey, I can't just give you cheap clothes and stuffed animals every anniversary."

"I know," she said, nuzzling his shoulder. "But it's the thought that counts."

"Yeah," he said. "And one of my thoughts were, 'I need to get my wife something special for our tenth anniversary'." He winked, causing Terra to giggle.

Leaving the store after giving the clerk the address to deliver the picture, Vaan and Terra went back the way they came to meet up with the others.

Pausing for a moment, Vaan stated, "Remember that first night we dated? I didn't know what to get you, so I went to Build-a-Bear and got you a Moogle."

Smiling widely, Terra nodded. "I remember. But it was the cutest thing ever, with the beany and the stuffed ice cream cone." He smiled back with equal caliber, then turned his gaze down to her stomach. Reaching out, he put a hand there, asking a simple question;

"What do you think about naming our next kid after a vegetable?"

* * *

**A/N: Who caught the reference there? :3**


End file.
